Antibodies attract attention as pharmaceuticals because they are highly stable in plasma and have few side effects. A number of IgG-type therapeutic antibodies are on the market, and even now many therapeutic antibodies are under development (Reichert et al., Nat. Biotechnol. 23:1073-1078 (2005); Pavlou et al., Eur. J. Pharma. Biopharin. 59(3):389-396 (2005)). Meanwhile, various techniques are being developed for second-generation therapeutic antibodies; including technologies for improving effector function, antigen-binding ability, pharmacokinetics or stability, and reducing the risk of immunogenicity (Kim et al., Mol. Cells. 20 (1):17-29 (2005)). The dosage for therapeutic antibodies is generally very high, and consequently the development of therapeutic antibodies confronts issues such as difficulty in producing subcutaneous formulations and high production costs. Methods for improving therapeutic antibody pharmacokinetics, pharmacodynamics, and antigen binding properties provide ways to reduce the dosage and production costs associated with therapeutic antibodies.
The substitution of amino acid residues in the constant region provides one method for improving antibody pharmacokinetics (Hinton et al., J. Immunol. 176 (1):346-356 (2006); Ghetie et al., Nat. Biotechnol. 15(7):637-640 (1997)). The technique of affinity maturation provides a method for enhancing antigen-neutralizing ability of an antibody (Rajpal et al., Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 102(24):8466-8471 (2005); Wu et al., J. Mol. Biol. 368:652 (2007)), and may increase the antigen-binding activity by introducing mutation(s) into amino acid residue(s) in the CDRs and/or framework regions of an antibody variable domain. Improving the antigen-binding properties of an antibody may improve the biological activity of the antibody in vitro or reduce the dosage, and may further improve the efficacy in vivo (in the body) (Wu et al., J. Mol. Biol. 368:652-665 (2007)).
The amount of antigen that can be neutralized by one antibody molecule depends on the affinity of the antibody for the antigen; and thus, it is possible to neutralize an antigen with a small amount of antibody by increasing affinity. Antibody affinity for an antigen may routinely be increased using various known methods (see. e.g., Rajpal et al., Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 102(24):8466-8471 (2005)). Further, it is theoretically possible to neutralize one antigen molecule (2 antigens when an antibody is bivalent) with one antibody molecule, if it can bind covalently to the antigen to make the affinity infinite. Nevertheless, one limitation for therapeutic antibody development thus far is that one antibody molecule typically only binds to and neutralizes one antigen molecule (2 antigens when an antibody is bivalent). Recently it has been reported that the use of an antibody that binds to an antigen in a pH-dependent manner (herein below also referred to as “pH-dependent antibody” or “pH-dependent-binding antibody”) enables one antibody molecule to bind to and neutralize multiple antigen molecules (see, e.g., WO2009/125825; Igawa et al., Nat. Biotechnol. 28:1203-1207 (2010)). A pH-dependent antibody binds to an antigen strongly under the neutral pH conditions in the plasma, and dissociates from the antigen under the acidic pH condition within the endosome of a cell. After dissociation from the antigen, the antibody is recycled to the plasma by FcRn and is then free to bind to and neutralize another antigen molecule; and thus one pH-dependent antibody may repeatedly bind to and neutralize multiple antigen molecules.
It has recently been reported that antibody recycling properties can be achieved by focusing on the difference of calcium (Ca) ion concentration between plasma and endosome, and using an antibody with an antigen-antibody interaction that demonstrates calcium dependency (herein below also referred to as “calcium ion concentration-dependent antibody”)(WO2012/073992). (Herein below, a pH-dependent antibody and a “calcium ion concentration-dependent antibody” are collectively referred to as a “pH/Ca concentration-dependent antibody”.)
By binding to FcRn, IgG antibodies have long retention in plasma. The binding between an IgG antibody and FcRn is strong under an acidic pH conditions (for example, pH 5.8), but there is almost no binding under a neutral pH condition (for example, pH 7.4). An IgG antibody is taken up into cells non-specifically, and returned to cell surface by binding to FcRn in the endosome under the acidic pH conditions in the endosome. The IgG then dissociates from the FcRn under the neutral pH conditions in the plasma.
It is reported that a pH-dependent antibody that has been modified to increase its FcRn binding under neutral pH conditions has the ability to repeatedly bind to and eliminate antigen molecules from plasma; and thus administration of such an antibody allows antigen elimination from plasma (WO2011/122011). According to this report, a pH-dependent antibody that has been modified to increase its FcRn binding under neutral pH conditions (for example, pH 7.4) can further accelerate the elimination of the antigen compared to a pH-dependent antibody that comprises the Fc region of a native IgG antibody (WO2011/122011).
Meanwhile, when mutations are introduced into the Fc region of an IgG antibody to eliminate its binding to FcRn under acidic pH conditions, it can no longer be recycled from the endosome into the plasma, which significantly compromises the antibody's retention in the plasma. With that, a method of increasing FcRn binding under acidic pH conditions is reported as a method for improving the plasma retention of an IgG antibody. Introducing amino acid modifications into the Fc region of an IgG antibody to increase its FcRn binding under acidic pH conditions can enhance the efficacy of recycling from the endosome to plasma, which as a result leads to an improvement in plasma retention. For instance, the modifications M252Y/S254T/T256E (YTE; Dall'Acqua et al., J. Biol. Chem. 281:23514-235249 (2006)), M428L/N434S (L S; Zalevsky et al., Nat. Biotechnol. 28:157-159 (2010)), and N434H (Zheng et al., Clin. Pharm. & Ther. 89(2):283-290 (2011)), have been reported to result in increased antibody half-life relative to native IgG1.
However, in addition to the concern that the immunogenicity or occurrence rate of aggregates may worsen in an antibody that comprises such an Fc region variant whose FcRn binding is increased under a neutral pH condition or an acidic pH condition, an increase in the binding against an anti-drug antibody (herein below also referred to as “Pre-existing ADA”) (for example, rheumatoid factor) present in a patient before administration of a therapeutic antibody has been further reported (WO2013/046722, WO2013/046704). WO2013/046704 reports that an Fc region variant containing specific mutations (represented by two residue modifications of Q438R/S440E according to EU numbering) increase the binding to FcRn under acidic pH conditions and also showed a significant reduction in binding to rheumatoid factor compared to unmodified native Fc. However, WO2013/046704 does not specifically demonstrate that this Fc region variant has superior plasma retention to an antibody with native Fc region.
Accordingly, safe and more favorable Fc region variants with further improved plasma retention that do not show binding to pre-existing ADA are desired.
Antibody-dependent cellular cytotoxicity (herein below noted as “ADCC”), complement-dependent cytotoxicity (herein below noted as “CDC”), antibody-dependent cellular phagocytosis (ADCP) which is phagocytosis of target cells mediated by an IgG antibody are reported as effector functions of an IgG antibody. In order for an IgG antibody to mediate ADCC activity or ADCP activity, the Fc region of the IgG antibody must bind to an antibody receptor present on the surface of an effector cell such as a killer cell, natural killer cell or activated macrophage (noted as “Fcγ receptor”, “FcgR”, “Fc gamma receptor” or “FcγR” within the scope of Disclosure A described herein). In human, FcγRIa, FcγRIIa, FcγRIIb, FcγRIIIa and FcγRIIIb isoforms are reported as FcγR family proteins, and their respective allotypes have also been reported (Jefferis et al., Immunol. Lett. 82:57-65 (2002)). The balance of the respective affinity of an antibody for an activating receptor comprising FcγRIa, FcγRIIa, FcγRIIIa or FcγRIIIb, and an inhibitory receptor comprising FcγRIIb is an important element in optimizing the antibody effector functions.
Various techniques that increase or improve the activity of a therapeutic antibody against an antigen have been reported so far. For instance, the activity of an antibody to bind to an activating FcγR(s) plays an important role in the cytotoxicity of the antibody, and consequently, antibodies that target a membrane-type antigen and that have increased cytotoxicity resulting from enhanced activating FcγR(s) binding have been developed. See, e.g., WO2000/042072; WO2006/019447; Lazar et al., Proc. Nat. Acad. Sci. USA. 103:4005-4010 (2006); Shinkawa et al., J. Biol. Chem. 278, 3466-3473 (2003); Clynes et al., Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 95:652-656 (1998); Clynes et al., Nat. Med. 6:443-446 (2000)). Similarly, the binding activity towards an inhibitory FcγR (FcγRIIb in human) plays an important role in the immunosuppressive activity, agonist activity, and thus there has been research on antibodies with increased inhibitory FcγR-binding activity that target a membrane-type antigen (Li et al., Proc. Nat. Acad. Sci. USA. 109 (27):10966-10971 (2012)). Further, the influence of FcγR binding of an antibody that binds to a soluble antigen has been examined mainly from the viewpoint of side effects (Scappaticci et al., J. Natl. Cancer Inst. 99 (16):1232-1239 (2007)). For instance, when an antibody with increased FcγRIIb binding is used as a drug, one can expect reduced risk from the generation of anti-drug antibodies (Desai et al., J. Immunol. 178(10):6217-6226 (2007)).
More recently, it has been reported that introducing amino acid modifications into the Fc region of an IgG antibody to increase the activity of an antibody that targets a soluble antigen to bind to an activating and/or inhibitory FcγR(s) can further accelerate elimination of the antigen from serum (WO2012/115241 WO2013/047752, WO2013/125667, WO2014/030728). Also, an Fc region variant has been identified, which shows almost no change in its FcγRIIb-binding activity from a native IgG antibody Fc region, but has reduced activity to other activating FcγRs (WO2014/163101).
The plasma retention of a soluble antigen is very short compared to an antibody that has an FcRn-mediated recycling mechanism, and thus a soluble antigen may display increased plasma retention and plasma concentration by binding to an antibody that has such a recycling mechanism (for example, an antibody that does not have the characteristics of a pH/Ca concentration-dependent antibody). Accordingly, for example, when a soluble antigen in plasma has multiple types of physiological functions, even if one type of physiological functions is blocked as a result of antibody binding, the plasma concentration of the antigen may worsen the pathogenic symptoms caused by the other physiological functions as a result of the increased plasma retention and/or plasma concentration of the antigen resulting from the antibody binding. In this case, in addition to a method of applying the above-mentioned exemplified modifications to an antibody to accelerate antigen elimination, for example, a method of utilizing the formation of a multivalent immune complex from multiple pH/Ca concentration-dependent antibodies and multiple antigens, and increasing the binding to FcRn, FcγR(s), a complement receptor, has been reported (WO2013/081143).
Even when the Fc region is not modified, it is reported that by modifying amino acid residue(s) so as to change the charge of such amino acid residue(s) which may be exposed on the surface of an antibody variable region to increase or decrease the isoelectric point (pI) of the antibody, it is possible to control the half-life of the antibody in blood regardless of the type of target antigen or antibody, and without substantially reducing the antigen-binding activity of the antibody (WO2007/114319: techniques of substituting amino acids mainly in the FR; WO2009/041643: techniques of substituting amino acids mainly in CDR). These documents show that it is possible to prolong the plasma half-life of an antibody by reducing the antibody's pI, and conversely shorten the plasma half-life of an antibody by increasing the antibody's pI.
With regard to modification of the charge of amino acid residues in the constant region of an antibody, it has been reported that the uptake of an antigen into cells can be promoted by modifying the charge of specific amino acid residue(s), particularly in its CH3 domain, to increase the antibody's pI, and it is also described that this modification preferably does not interfere with the binding to FcRn (WO2014/145159). It has also been reported that modifying the charge of amino acid residues in the constant region (mainly CH1 domain) of an antibody to reduce pI can prolong the half-life of the antibody in plasma, and in combination with mutations of amino acid residues to increase FcRn binding, can enhance its binding to FcRn and prolong the plasma half-life of the antibody (WO2012/016227).
Meanwhile, when such modification techniques designed for increasing or reducing the pI of an antibody are combined with techniques other than the modification technique to increase or reduce the binding to FcRn or FcγR(s), it is unclear whether there is an effect in promoting the plasma retention of the antibody or elimination of the antigen from plasma.
The extracellular matrix (ECM) is a structure that covers cells in vivo, and is mainly constituted by glycoproteins such as collagen, proteoglycan, fibronectin, and laminin. The role of the ECM in vivo is to create a microenvironment for cells to survive, and the ECM is important in various functions carried out by cells such as, cell proliferation and cell adhesion.
The ECM has been reported to be involved in the in vivo kinetics of proteins administered to a living body. Blood concentration of the VEGF-Trap molecule, which is a fusion protein between the VEGF receptor and Fc, when subcutaneously administered was examined (Holash et al., Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci., 99(17):11393-11398 (2002)). Plasma concentration of the subcutaneously administered VEGF-Trap molecule which has a high pI, was low, and therefore its bioavailability was low. A modified VEGF-Trap molecule whose pI was reduced by amino acid substitutions has a higher plasma concentration, and its bioavailability could be improved. Further, change in the bioavailability correlates with the strength of binding to the ECM, and thus it became evident that the bioavailability of the VEGF-Trap molecule when subcutaneously administered depends on the strength of its binding to the ECM at the subcutaneous site.
WO2012/093704 reports that there is an inverse correlation between antibody binding to the ECM and plasma retention, and consequently, antibody molecules that do not bind to the ECM have better plasma retention when compared to antibodies that bind to the ECM.
As such, techniques for reducing extracellular matrix binding with the objective of improving protein bioavailability in vivo and plasma retention have been reported. By contrast, the advantages of increasing antibody binding to the ECM have not been identified so far.
Human IL-8 (Interleukin 8) is a chemokine family member that is 72 or 77 amino acid residues in length. The term “chemokine” is a collective term for a family of proteins with a molecular weight of 8-12 kDa and contain 4 cysteine residues that form intermolecular disulfide bonds. Chemokines are categorized into CC chemokine, CXC chemokine, C chemokine, CA3C chemokine according to the characteristics of the cysteine arrangement. IL-8 is classified as a CXC chemokine, and is also referred to as CXCL8.
IL-8 exists in solution in monomeric and homodimeric form. The IL-8 monomer contains antiparallel β sheets, and has a structure in which a C-terminal α helix traverses and covers the β sheets. An IL-8 monomer, in the case of the 72 amino acid form of IL-8, comprises two disulfide crosslinks between cysteine 7 and cysteine 34, and between cysteine 9 and cysteine 50. IL-8 homodimers are stabilized by noncovalent interactions between the β sheets of the two monomers, as there is no covalent binding between molecules in homodimers.
IL-8 expression is induced in various cells such as peripheral blood monocytes, tissue macrophages, NK cells, fibroblasts, and vascular endothelial cells in response to stimulation by inflammatory cytokines (Russo et al., Exp. Rev. Clin. Immunol. 10(5):593-619 (2014)).
Chemokines are generally not detectable, or only weakly detectable, in normal tissue, but are strongly detected at inflamed sites, and are involved in eliciting inflammation by facilitating infiltration of leukocyte into inflamed tissue sites. IL-8 is a proinflammatory chemokine that is known to activate neutrophils, promote expression of cell adhesion molecules, and enhance neutrophil adhesion to vascular endothelial cells. IL-8 also has neutrophil chemotactic capacity and IL-8 produced at a damaged tissue facilitates chemotaxis of neutrophils adhered to vascular endothelial cells into the tissue, and induces inflammation along with neutrophil infiltration. IL-8 is also known to be a potent angiogenic factor for endothelial cells and is involved in promoting tumor angiogenesis.
Inflammatory diseases associated with elevated (e.g., excess) IL-8 levels include, inflammatory diseases of the skin such as inflammatory keratosis (e.g., psoriasis), atopic dermatitis, contact dermatitis; chronic inflammatory disorders which are autoimmune diseases, such as rheumatoid arthritis, systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), and Behcet's disease; inflammatory bowel diseases such as Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis; inflammatory liver diseases such as hepatitis B, hepatitis C, alcoholic hepatitis, drug-induced allergic hepatitis; inflammatory renal diseases such as glomerulonephritis; inflammatory respiratory diseases such as bronchitis and asthma; inflammatory chronic vascular diseases such as atherosclerosis; multiple sclerosis, oral ulcer, chorditis, and inflammation associated with using artificial organs and/or artificial blood vessels. Elevated (e.g., excess) IL-8 levels are also associated with malignant tumors such as ovarian cancer, lung cancer, prostate cancer, stomach cancer, breast cancer, melanoma, head and neck cancers, and kidney cancer; sepsis due to infection; cystic fibrosis; and pulmonary fibrosis. (See, e.g., Russo et al., Exp. Rev. Clin. Immunol. 10(5):593-619 (2014), which is herein incorporated by reference in its entirety).
For several of these diseases, human anti-IL-8 antibodies with high affinity have been developed as pharmaceutical compositions (Desai et al., J. Immunol. 178(10):6217-6226 (2007)), however, they have not been launched yet. So far, only one pharmaceutical composition comprising IL-8 antibody is available, which is a morin anti-IL-8 antibody for psoriasis as external medicine. New anti-IL-8 antibodies for treatment diseases are expected.